You'll See Your Hero Come Running
by courtneymarie87
Summary: A variation on what happened at the end of 1x22 "For Whom The Bell Tolls" aka the crazy season finale. If you haven't seen it SPOILER ALERT for this story. Disclaimer: I do not own any PLL goodness. I also don't own the song.
1. Un

Toby Cavanaugh sat in his room, waiting, as he drummed his fingers on the hardwood top of his desk. Something had to be wrong. He hadn't heard from her yet and it was getting later by the minute. The girls were supposed to be meeting Ian around nine, if everything had gone smoothly, he would have heard from her by now. He knew he should have gone.

Not being able to sit still, he started pacing the floor and thinking about their afternoon together. It was so peaceful. She had homework to do, but asked him to join her anyway. She said she liked having him there. He questioned if it was because it made a statement to her parents. _No, because I like having you here,_ she had scoffed back. She looked at him like it was the most absurd thing in the world for her to want him around for any other reason.

Their last exchange had stayed with him all evening. Her words were more powerful than anything anyone had ever told him. It was the first time in his life that he ever really felt important to another person. It made him ache to hear her voice again.

_"I'll keep Jenna busy like you asked me to, but I wish I was going with you tonight…"_

_She grabbed his hand and looked up at him with those beautiful, brown eyes. "Hey, you're helping me by finding out if she's a part of this or not."_

_He knew this was true, but he couldn't help thinking that he should be there with her. They could do something else about Jenna._

_"Look, I've never… had a safe place to land, but now I feel like I do; so, I want you to stay safe."_

He had promised to be safe, but he should have made her promise the same thing. Not knowing what to do, trying to avoid thinking that something terrible had happened to her; Toby plugged in his music player and pressed shuffle. A melody began to fill his room and he just listened. The words were comforting and he got lost in them.

Suddenly, a noise came from his phone. _Finally_, he thought. Walking over and picking it up off his desk, he smiled, expecting to see her name. A message saying that everything had worked out and their nightmare was finally over. Instead the smile dropped from his face. All along it was exactly what he had been afraid of.

**Spencer never showed. She won't answer her phone and we don't know where she is. Have you heard from her?** - Emily

He felt so foolish to not have trusted his instincts. Now he had to find her. How was he going to figure out where she was? The last time that he had seen or spoken with her was earlier in the day.

While she was sleeping on his lap, her phone had gone off. She got up and found a message from Melissa; Ian hadn't shown up at the church and her sister needed a ride home. If she never made it to meet the girls and she had made it to the church, maybe something happened to her there.

That's where he would have to start. The last thing he said to her was that if she needed anything, he would be there for her. She told him she loved knowing that. Toby wasn't about to back down from that statement. He was prepared to brave anything for her. Spencer Hastings usually acted like she didn't need saving, but she let her guard down for him. He intended to make sure she never regretted that.

Jenna called after him as he went rushing out the front door. They were supposed to watch a movie together. It was part of his plan to keep her busy, but he had to go. He had no time to make up excuses for her and left without as much as a goodbye.


	2. Deux

He felt lucky to have finally gotten his motorcycle running. He was well aware he shouldn't be making the turns as fast as he was, but he needed to get to her. Something in him knew she was going to be at the church; he just wasn't sure what else awaited him there. At a stoplight close to his destination, his phone buzzed.

It was Emily. "I'm on my way to the church," he said as he picked up the call.

"How did you know she was there?" Emily asked.

He had been right. She never made it out of the church. "I didn't," he answered," it was just a hunch."

Emily sounded frantic. "She called me… or her phone did… I don't know… we called the police…"

"What? Why?"

"Ian... Ian is with her. We just heard some struggling and…". He didn't need to hear any more. He hung up the phone and sped faster than he ever remembered going before. If his bike was wrecked again, at least this time it would be for the most important reason he could think of.

When he pulled up to the church, he couldn't stop fast enough. As he made his way inside, he noticed Spencer's purse lying on the ground. It was the only visible sign of struggle or someone else's presence.

"Spencer?," he called out, "Spence? Can you hear me?"

Nothing.

A moment passed before he realized that he could hear muffled screaming. He tried to follow the noise and it led him to a small office where he saw an open door. When he was nearer to it, a darkened staircase revealed the cries getting louder. All he could do was begin his ascent up what felt like a million stairs. He knew when he had finally gotten close to her; he could hear them fighting. Toby didn't want to know what Ian was doing to her, but he was going to find out.

Spencer's weak voice was pleading for mercy, "Please, if you love my sister you won't do this."

"I'm doing it because I love her, " Ian replied.

When he finally got to the top of the bell tower, he was more afraid than ever by what he saw. She was hanging off the edge of the top most balcony and Ian was hovering above her. Clawing and scratching at the wood, at Ian's feet; she was trying to grab on to something that could pull her body back up. He wasn't sure what the best course of action was, but he was sure that _his_ life would be nothing without _hers_.

"What are you doing here?", said Ian, astonished as Toby approached. It took his crazed attention away long enough for Spencer to grab hold of a piece of the wooden rail that was still intact. He took one last look as his broken girl and gave Ian a forceful shove off the shattered platform. He didn't have time to watch the plummet as he rushed to her side and aided in getting her to safety.

The chiming of the bells was eerie. A shiver ran up his spine as he thought about what would be there if he looked down. She gazed up at him, her eyes full to the brim with large tears, and collapsed forward into his arms. He caressed her gently and let her cry for a few moments.

"It's okay. It's okay. It's over. I've got you now, " he assured her.

When he was finally able to get her up, he guided her away from the edge as he peered over it, holding on to her hand tightly. Ian was hanging from the bell tower ropes, swaying back and forth with the rhythm of the ringing. As they descended the stairs together, he wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her close. "Thank you," she whispered softly.

Emily, Hanna and Aria were waiting outside the church. The police had arrived and a crowd was forming, faint mumblings wondered what was going on. He kept his arm firmly around her as they walked toward her friends. The last thing he wanted to do was stop holding her, but he knew that they had been just as worried about her as he had.

She let go of his hand slowly, asking him to wait there for her while she spoke to them. Each one reached out as they took her into a large hug. He stood stoically watching while they spoke. The relief in their eyes was the same relief he had felt after he pushed Ian from the top of the tower.

He never dreamt of doing something like that; he never thought he could _actually_ hurt someone. It was not a crime without reason. If he was asked, he wouldn't be lying to say it was done in self defense. She was becoming part of him and she was in danger. At that moment, Spencer must have told the girls exactly what transpired in the church. They gazed over at him, not with looks of hate or disgust as they once had, but ones of thankfulness. Emily smiled faintly and he nodded in reply.

When they were finished, Spencer made her way back to him and put her arms around his stomach, resting her head against him. He stroked her hair and didn't say a word. He somehow knew that all she needed was his presence.


	3. Trois, La Fin

Around three-thirty in the morning, he got a message. They had parted after things died down for the night. He made sure to reiterate that if she needed him, all she had to do was say the word.

**Please come over. I can't sleep.** - Spencer

Gathering his music player and putting on a coat, he quietly made his way down the stairs. He wasn't sure how he made it past Jenna's room without waking her. She was usually a very light sleeper.

When he arrived at her house, she was waiting outside the back door. She looked exhausted. Her hair was falling onto her shoulders in a tangle of curls and the small pajamas she was wearing could not have been warm. As soon as she saw him, she sighed in relief and ran into his arms. He held her close for a moment.

"You must be cold."

"I don't care. I just needed you here."

"Let's go inside," he said taking her hand. She led him through the open door motioning slightly for him to be silent. They tiptoed their way up the stairs to her room and shut the door.

Her bed looked as though she had tried to sleep in it, but was not successful. Her lights were on and there was an open book on the red chair by her window. It was his. He had left it there the previous afternoon.

"Reading?", he questioned, pointing to it.

She nodded. "It looked interesting... and I couldn't sleep."

"You should have reached out to me sooner."

"I know. I waited until everyone else was asleep."

"Understandable."

She climbed up onto her bed and placed her head against the pillow, pulling a blanket over top of her.

"Where are your headphones?", he asked as he took off his shoes, setting them near the door. She pointed to her desk. He found them a few moments later and pulled his music player from his coat pocket.

He crawled into the bed next to her and put his arm around her shoulders. She nuzzled as close to him as she could and rested her head on his chest. They laid motionless and silent for a few minutes before she began to cry. He ran his hand over her hair and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead; then he spoke.

"I would do anything for you. If something had happened to you tonight, I'm not sure where that would have left me."

She looked up at him and he used the pad of his thumb to wipe away the large tear that was rolling down her cheek. Something told him she didn't let people see her so vulnerably very often. It was powerful that she showed that part of herself to him. He took one of the headphone ear pieces and put it to her ear; he put the other one to his.

"Try to sleep," he whispered," I'm not going anywhere."

He pressed play and closed his eyes. He hoped the words would lull her to sleep and she would find comfort in his arms...

"_I see it in the way you would do_

_When no one else could ever get through_

_Holding back til I come around_

_Time and time again you wait for me to come in_

_And did you really look my way_

_Cause no one could've seen this coming_

_I would never let you down _

_If I was running backwards in full time_

_So, I can and I will_

_And you'll see_

_Your hero come running_

_Over and over tonight_

_And I do wanna love you_

_If you see me running back_

_And I do wanna try_

_Cause if falling for you, girl, is crazy_

_Then I'm going out of my mind_

_So hold back your tears this time_

_Me? I'm used to being tired and bloody_

_But you believed that I could be somebody_

_You put your world on hold for me_

_Gave away to follow failure through the fire_

_I need you to know I will_

_Believe me, girl, I'm so tired of running_

_I just wanna hold your hand_

_Stare at you like you've got everything I need."_

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Just in case anyone is wondering, the song lyrics are from "For The Nights I Can't Remember" by Hedley. Great song. I thought it was perfect for this pairing. In other news - it was brought to my attention that there is a slight fact discrepancy. So just disregard the fact that Jenna can't _watch_ a movie. How insensitive of me. Apologies, Jenna :)**


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